Oh man. Tough loss for Hawks fans yesterday, eh? I wasn’t able to catch much of the game because my sensitive-eared toddler wasn’t loving all the yelling, and we had to exit the main viewing area. But we did get to watch the half time show. And all I have to say about that is dancing sharks. Dancing sharks, man. Right?

Well, Sunday may have been a bit of a downer around here (aside from those sharks and singing palm trees) but Monday is looking up. Because we’ve got Hearty Tuscan Bean Stew happening! A perfect wintertime Monday post-Superbowl-sadness (and indulgence) dinner if I’ve ever seen one.

This comforting stew is made up of a quick combo of beans, garlic, rosemary, and kale. It comes together in just over a half hour (most of it hands-off), and it’s vegan and gluten-free – but even my hardcore carnivorous (and non-kale-loving) guy is a fan. We love it with a side of toasted crusty bread, but it would also be excellent served over polenta or quinoa.

Directions:

Add the olive oil to a large, heavy pan over medium heat. When hot, add the onions, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for one more minute. Stir in the thyme, salt, and black pepper. Add the beans, broth, rosemary, and bay leaf. Stir to combine. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low to maintain a simmer until the stew is thickened, 20-25 minutes.

Add the kale and cook until wilted, 3-4 minutes.

Remove the rosemary sprigs and bay leaf. Taste and add additional salt and pepper if desired.

Serve as-is or over polenta, brown rice, or quinoa. Drizzle individual servings with a little olive oil, if desired.

Pantry recipe note: Leave out the kale if you don’t have any on hand.

Meat option:

If meat-eaters would really like to amp it up, some cooked, chopped chicken added at the end of the process or to individual carnivorous servings would do nicely.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories: 415

Total carbohydrates: 72.4g

Dietary fiber: 21.9g

Sugars: 3.9g

Protein: 26.4g

Vitamin A: 171%

Vitamin C: 116%

Calcium: 19%

Iron: 52%

Nutrition information is an estimate. I am not a nutrition expert! Because I am paying more attention to nutrition info myself these days, I thought I would share (it helps me for future reference too!) I used the Calorie Count tool to calculate this information.

I love bean stews, and adding the chopped chicken at the end might just lure my Mr into loving this as well. If not, more for me!
We have been having some rainy summer nights here in Brisbane, and this stew would go down a treat 🙂 – and perfect for Monday nights too!

This looks like the perfect meal for the cold weather we’ve been having lately. It’s been snowing so I’ve been walking to work rather than biking, which takes twice as long and I get home HUNGRY! I’m going to add this to my batch cooking list for the coming weekend!

Hubby & i are vegan & we love this stew! Made it several times over the past year. Served it to our carnivore friends & they loved it too! Along with a plate of mini soccas, everone loved the flavor profile. Simply delicious!! Thank you 😉

Hi Klaudia, thanks so much for the nice comment! I made this again recently too and remembered how much I loved it. I’m working on a ribollita recipe that I’ll be publishing soon, keep an eye out for that one too! 🙂 Happy holidays!